A Long Train
by Gir obsesser
Summary: After a cruel death, Hogwarts student Sisco Jin finds herself on a train headed for what she can only imagine is Utopia, her twin abandoned in the land of the living. And on this train, her only companion is none other than Severus Snape. Poor Sev.
1. Shit, I'm dead!

All characters identifiable with original book context do not belong to me, but Rowlings.

"Come on Sisco!" She heard her name being called, but couldn't move. The heaviness of her cloak weighed her small frame down as her once lively blue eyes gazed now steely on the scene, the orange flames of the destruction reflecting in her pupils. "Sisco!"

"Ricky is back there!" she screamed, coming from her trance. She pointed at the collapsed tower they had moments before fled from. "We have to go back for him! Felixander!" A strand of her dark brown hair was shoved behind her ear, then her wrist firmly grasped as she was dragged off. "Ricky!" she screamed hoarsely over her shoulder.

"We can't! You-Know-Who is here! We're in the middle of a war zone!"

"He's my brother!"

"He's already dead!" His words stung. The girl jerked her wrist away, her feet stumbling away on the scorched Earth, staring wild-eyed at the boy before her. He stared back through hazel eyes. "Sisco…."

She turned abruptly and fled back to the scene they had just come from, panting as her lungs slammed against her chest. She heard her name being shouted above the roar of battle, but was too stubborn to listen.

_At Hogwarts School, a little girl with dark chestnut hair sat on a stool, face hidden under a tall pointed brown hat, which hummed and whispered within her head._

"Ricky!" she screamed wildly, hardly aware of the wizards falling at her sides.

"_This one here, she goes to Ravenclaw!" Her blue eyes met the identical ones of her brother, who sat at a table under a green banner. She bit her lip, and he waved sadly. The hat sighed upon her head just as he was being taken off, and said "A miscalculation! My mistake! Off to Slytherin!"_

"What are you doing?" Her shoulders were clasped by one of the teachers – the herbology professor, she believed. "Leave Hogwarts NOW!"

"I can't! My brother is in there!"

"Go!"

"No!"

She jerked away, sliding past the professor and back into the battlefront, narrowly dodging the yellow streak of a curse.

"_I don't know, Ricky, I don't think I'm a real witch." It was still fairly early in the year, the two nestled in the common room, and Ricktor placed down his book to stare at her once she had whispered this in his ear. Felixander also glanced up, eager to catch a snippet of the conversation._

"_Why's that?"_

"_Well…" she twiddled her thumbs. "I'm not very good with spells or anything."_

"_Sisco, you are not a squib. You just need to get your nose out of the text book and actually practice, that's all." She winced – he hadn't whispered, but rather said it loud enough so that anyone within a five foot proximity could easily hear. Felixander hooted, and Sisco cast him a glare. "Come on, you're a Slytherin!"_

"_I… I guess."_

"_You heard the hat. And Neville Longbottom said it never lies." Her deep ocean orbs were no match for his sharp piercing sky eyes, and she slowly stood as he did, taking her wand in hand. "Let's practice Lumnos – you can't get in trouble there. Flick you wrist… that's it. Here, say it stronger. A little more. Remember, wrist."_

"_I did it!"_

"Ricky!" She clambered over browned rubble, but began tumbling down before she realized it was a whole mound. She shrieked, clawing at anything and everything as her body was battered against the stone mess.

"_I don't like headmaster Snape. He's weird."_

_Ricky laughed at his sister's sudden comment and Felix joined in. They waded a bit deeper into the murky lake water. "Man, it's kind of cold." Ricky mumbled, shivering._

"_Yeah, you'd think that – Ricky! Your sister!"_

_Ricktor leaped, grasping his twin's hand as it waved in the air, her head begging for breath from below. He pulled her up then watched as she heaved. "Don't… step there. Hole." She mumbled, and he clenched her hand tightly._

A firm grasp took her wrist, which slid through until her palm met another. Sisco gazed up in amazement as her brother barred his teeth, leaning over a ledge as he attempted to pull her up. She found a foothold and scurried toward him, panting.

"Ricky…." She mumbled weakly.

He grinned sheepishly.

"_I heard that You-Know-Who's coming. Harry Potter's going to stop him, though." Sisco glanced up nervously as her brother paced to and fro, repeating his statement. They had missed their way home, waiting for Felixander to finish grabbing his things, and now all three were abandoned, huddled in the boys' dormitories, hiding._

"_Won't mom or dad come for us?"_

"_They're muggles, they wouldn't understand." Felixander muttered, "And my parents would probably be just plain cheeky if I came back home as a pile of soot."_

_Sisco chewed her index finger's nail nervously. "Maybe we should find and adult and just-"_

"_No! We'll get in too much trouble." Ricktor said shakily, pulling his dark hair, "There's got to be another way…."_

"_Floo?" Felix suggested._

"_Too risky."_

"_Ricky, this is getting out of hand!" Sisco pleaded, glancing out the window. "We need tell someone grown we're here."_

"_No!"_

"We have to get out of here. We need to tell an adult." Sisco tightened her grip on his hand as they clambered up the mound as he scolded her. "You shouldn't have come back! You could have been hurt. Or worse!"

"I couldn't just leave you here!"

Suddenly, a large explosion from behind them. The two turned and stared at a wall beside them as it began to crumble. "Come on, let's go!" Ricky screamed, pulling her down the other side of the mound. Both sprinted, but laced fingers began slipping.

"Ricky!" she yelped, trying to catch up to him, to clasp his hand again. But he had always been faster. Always. She hurriedly widened her strides, feeling debris knock against her shoulder. Suddenly, her foot slipped into a gap.

Eyes snapping wide, she clawed at the rubble that swallowed up to her knee. But the more she dug away, the more seemed to fall in. She screamed as a long shard of glass fell into the hole, and tugged feebly, tears streaking her cheeks. Then, she heard the sickening pop, and just as a mountain of pain began rising, it fell. She didn't understand, but there is only so much pain a body could take before it went into survival-mode, pressing hurt into the rear of conscious thought. "Ricky!"

"Sisco?" The body screamed, halting midstep and turning, only to become horrified as he watched his sibling take a sharp rock, sawing into her own flesh. And the wall above continued to waver. He began running forward, watching as she cut into her muscle, and then revealed white bone, which she feebly began to beat the stone against. Her veins became visible, falling loosely from the open flesh, vomiting red fluid about her. "Sisco…." His faced greened, and he clutched his stomach.

Her bone wouldn't break. Suddenly, a roar from behind her. She glanced over her shoulder at the collapsing building, then back at him.

"_Ricky?" The small group of three was pressed against the stone wall, hiding their head in their arms._

"_Hmm?"_

"_Hey, guys, we've got to go." Felixander said, watching as the walls of the dorm about them began to quiver._

"_No matter what happens, I love you."_

"_I love you too sis."_

Sisco stared dumbly. She knew it was over. There was no escape. And even if there was, she would most likely bleed to death before they could reach help. "Run!" She watched as he stared at her, petrified – her brother's weakness, fear. "Ricky!" she screamed, tears welling in her eyes. She offered him a small smile then soon hunched over as she coughed for breath, screaming as the walls about her fell, the dust intoxicating the air, the remains of that side of the building burying her.

But she was relieved of one thing – she saw that her brother was at a far enough distance. She didn't measure or guess. Somehow, she just knew. And as her faced paled as a bed post stuck between her shoulder and out the other side of her chest, she had that one bit of hope before she crumpled to her knees, then sucked in her last breath.

It was never released.

"I… I love you too… sis…." The padding of feet was heard as a young boy sprinted into the night, gruesome visions scarred into his brain.


	2. Train to an abyss

All characters identifiable with original book context do not belong to me, but Rowlings.

She felt like puking as she felt the sudden lurch, hurling her unto a soft but firm surface. Her whole life ached within her stomach, although she felt oddly relieved of it. Sitting up, small hands rubbed at blue eyes. It was then she noticed she bore no clothing, but as soon as the thought came to mind, she found herself in her school uniform, clean and smelling fresh of lavenders. She pressed her nose against her sleeve, eyes closed for the moment, as she reflected on her elusive memory.

Languidly, she lowered her hand to peer at her surroundings. Sisco gasped, jolting to arch her back. She found herself floating in nothingness, a black epitome. "Hello?" she asked, stumbling to her feet on the invisible floor. She choked back a whimper as she wandered the area, shoes clicking on the darkness. "Ricky?" she asked, "Felix?"

She stiffed as a distant sound buzzed in her ear. She strained to listen, but it wasn't needed as the buzz grew into a rumble, causing tenseness along the ground, then became a roar, causing the floor to shake. She nervously looked about for the sound, but in the abyss, it was impossible to tell… at least until a dim light appeared.

In an animalistic manner, she turned on her heal and dashed as far as possible, but the light only grew. Cautiously craning her neck, she squinted at the light.

And a hollow whistle filled the air - the whistle of a train.

She watched in awe as the large steam engine, humming and chugging, rumbled into the invisible station. It pulled up a few feet away from where she stood, a grey mist soaking the black universe about. Sisco gaped, the brown and red engine seemingly awaiting her.

"All aboard!" her head snapped up as a voice shouted into the emptiness.

"Hey!" she replied, suddenly eager to trot to the train. She stumbled through the darkness towards the light, waving her hand at the shadow of the figure. She managed to skid to a halt when she made it to a tall man, smiling down gingerly, gazing at her with twinkling blue eyes. "Are you… God?" she stuttered.

He laughed cheerily, shaking his head. She frowned, stepping back yet again, jerking away. "Come on, don't be shy. Step aboard."

"Where's it going?" she questioned testily, raising and eyebrow. He stroked his long white beard, gazing down at her with a genuine smile. She squinted. "Wait… aren't you Headmaster Dumbl-"

"I think you'll find where you're going by the end of the ride." He assured, and quietly, she stared up at him. He offered a hand, and she glanced about. "I don't believe there's much here to wait on, is there?" he smiled. It wasn't a question, but a statement. Timidly, she grasped his hand, and he helped hoist her up the steps.

She nearly collapsed as the train lurched forward, and he chuckled lightly. "Am I… you know…." Sisco whispered, already knowing the answer. The elder sympathetically patted her hand, and then pointed to the door before them.

"You're car will be the twelfth. You are to stay there until we pull into the final station."

"When will that be?"

"Go along, now." He said, patting her back. She was distressed at how few answers she received, but he urged her forward through the doorframe.

"Wait, are you coming with me?" he waved as the door slammed in her face, then turned to enter the door on the opposite side of the compartment she had moments previously stood in.

She slowly turned to gaze at the car. There were many compartments, filled with chattering people… though not all of them human. A few doors open, peeking out curiously at her. The majority of these were children like herself, perhaps looking for a family member.

She walked the strip between the compartments, eyes shifting nervously. When the young girl reached the end of it, she had no choice but to grasp the brass handle and start again.

The rest of the way went like this, very slowly and methodically, timed to some mute melody, almost like a graduation ceremony. Sisco counted the carts as she passed, using her fingers to assist her.

Finally, at the end of the eleventh cart, she reached slowly for the handle. She winced as a slight jolt was sent up the pad of her finger, and pulled away instantly. She placed her hand on the handle once more timidly, this time receiving no shock, and pushed gingerly.

Sisco stepped into the car, glancing nervously about, licking her lips. Now there, she wasn't sure of how to approach finding a seat.

"Hello?" she asked, knocking on the door of the first compartment. The door swung open, and six old men grinned toothily at her, each holding a hand of cards.

"Sorry girly, we're full." One towards the back hooted, and it slammed, nearly trapping her knuckles in the door. She frowned, and then turned to the next compartment. She repeated this, and the door opened to three girls, two trolls, and a house elf. They shook their heads, and the compartment door was slammed closed once more.

She kept up this method, as it seemed relatively effective, though perhaps cursed, as she was turned down every time. It was obvious that each car was supposed to hold six at maximum, but as she came to the rear, she found a cart that had twice as many as should. Another was of the same case. All until she reached the last compartment, when she realized they had been avoiding something.

She tentatively reached her hand towards the door of the compartment then glanced at the other compartments. She drew her hand back, and knocked again at one of the other ones, begging to be an extra, afraid of the unknown. Though, the others refused, despite the bending of the rules.

So, in the end, Sisco found herself again at the rear. She frowned – perhaps there was room in the next car? She reached for the back handle, and swung it open, stepping out.

She screamed as she found herself tripping over the railing of the end, into pitch black. This was the end of the train – twelve cars. She shielded her face, bracing herself.

Then felt a sharp tug on the back of her robes. Sisco felt nauseated as she was hauled back unto the edge, into the warmth of the car. She panted, glancing up. A set of grey eyes were focused on her, but her vision was blurry with headache and she couldn't quite focus on anything else. "Whe-Where's the next car?"

"It won't exist until another boards the train." She was roughly cast aside, and a door slammed from somewhere behind her. Sisco stared blankly at the door before her, the one that showed the black abyss.

"What kind of train is this?" she shuttered, clawing at her aching stomach. She rather felt like vomiting, and had to wonder how this was utopia. Almost all media in the universe talked of dying and suddenly sprouting wings to float into heaven, where nothing could harm you. So why was she on a train it the dark plainly able to feel sick?

Quietly, she pushed herself to her feet, and again walked to the unnerving compartment. She knocked slowly, pursing her lips, migraine pounding. Her confusion did nothing to help the situation.

"It's open." A cold voice stated. She slung herself into the compartment, stretched across an empty seat, and passed out.

Hours later – or so it seemed, light filtered through her eyelids. She tossed, feeling hot, and let out a strangle cry as she felt pain in her leg – although she knew full and well that the wound was no longer there. She blindly reached a hand towards it, rolling over with her palm on her knee.

"Silence."

The voiced snapped her back into reality, and her leg instantly stopped aching, as if it never had in the first place. Her eyes flickered open, and she glanced about. The wood paneled floor of the compartment was the first thing she saw, followed by the curtained window, and then, on the opposite bench, a man glaring at her. He was tucked in the corner, a rather irritated look over his face, but it was plainly underlined by distress.

"H-headmaster." She stuttered, feeling uneasy and defensive. She gritted her teeth. "I'm going to hell." She whimpered, staring at the floor again.

"That would be amusing."

"I'm not?" she said, surprised, "But I thought you-" She stared at him, biting her lip. "Oh…." She sat up, pulling her knees towards her chest. The compartment was silent for a moment before she mumbled "So you were a good guy the whole time?" The man stared blandly at her, then back at the curtained window. She blinked, and then stared at her hands. "I called you weird earlier this year." He didn't move, still rigid within his own thoughts. "I'm sorry about that." She twitched at the silence, wondering once again if she was in hell. "I almost drowned moments after that."

He glanced at her with a raised eyebrow, and she grinned widely. "Ms. Jin, that was incredibly foolish. Five points from Slytherin."

"B-but! I'm not in school!" She stuttered. His face set to stone, and he whipped out a wand. She was confused that he had it, but he conjured a book and thrust it at her. She looked down at the title and realized that it was a potions textbook. She glanced up at him. "How did you do that? We're dead!"

"Read, Jin. I have no desire to hear your mouth. Perhaps you'll even learn something."

She stared at his wand in awe for several moments, and then looked down at the book, forcing herself to read the yellowed pages. After all, what much else is there to do when you're only company in death is Severus Snape?

At some point, Sisco, much like a Ravenclaw, had become engrossed in the book, flipping each page carefully. But at some point, the lights seemed to dim, and it became harder to read the small text. Even the diagrams became a bit of a blur. She squinted for as long as possible, but alas, she had to pry her eyes away.

She blinked, rubbing her lids hastily before glancing up. The headmaster, though usually quite a bone-freezing vision, had made a handsome sight of himself. He sat with his back against the wall, one leg stretching the length of the seat while the other was bent into the air, supporting his arm that held a book. Greasy locks of black hair had fallen before his eyes, but in the dim, almost moonlight-like illumination, it seemed simply glossy. In fact, the lighting didn't seem to bother him in the least, and his black robes only added to his shadow appearance.

Sisco marveled at him. He sensed her stare, and glared up snidely. "Yes, Ms. Jin?"

"Um nothing… sir." He continued to glare at her, and she knew that he wouldn't stop until she had answered his question fittingly. Somehow, it seemed he knew the thoughts of his students. Many said it was a spell. Felix had always jokingly said he was really a Japanese demon, called an oni, and had a bunch of hidden eyeballs all over the place and the powers to read minds. Then again, if he was reading her mind, why would he ask the question? "Um… you look… very nice, sir. Not in that kind of way! Just…." She searched for the word as his raised eyebrow continued to mock her. "Elegant. Like an oni… wait… no, not like an oni… wait… can an oni be elegant?"

He squinted at her, shook his head at her ridiculous babble, and turned back to his book. She bit the side of her lip, desperate for human contact. Suddenly, the lights flickered off, and her heart sunk to her stomach. She pressed her face against the glass of the window to the hall – but there was no light there, either. "Jin, calm yourself – it's simply the expression of night."

"Oh…." She blinked, twiddling her fingers. "Well… it was night when I died."

"But then you slept for a day. Thus, it is night once more." He didn't bother looking up at her, simply flipping the page of his book in a bored manner.

She kicked her feet quietly, and stared at him in the lowlight… wait… lowlight? She spun to her side, at the curtained window that would show her the outside world. She glanced at Snape, who seemed unbothered, then at the curtain. Hesitantly, she pulled it aside, and gasped. "Headmaster…."

"Yes?" the tone was cold and icy.

"Look!" He didn't even glance up, simply flipping the page of his book. "Headmaster!"

"Jin, I've been here long enough to know what an abyss looks like."

"But look!" He flipped another page, and she felt the hairs on her neck raise. She lunged towards him, and he was shocked as his usually calm pupil hulled him to the window, yanking aside the curtains.

Before them was a giant silvery sphere. It glowed brightly, craters toned slightly blue, gleaming against the flecks behind it. She would have said it was the moon – but it wasn't the Earth moon, for a distance behind it was another white globe, and another, and another. All set across a black blanket littered with twinkling stars. Both watched as they slowly drifted past the satellite, a sphere of orange gas and raging red storms becoming visible.

Sisco glanced at her teacher, but realized that he didn't seem surprised at all. A little humbled, maybe, but not surprised. "So the train has finally left the station." He said thoughtfully. He looked at her – and she saw a once in a lifetime sight (although she was dead). A gentle but small smile played across his features. And it was aimed at her.

He resumed his reading, and she continued to stare at the outside world like an excited puppy. Finally, though, she realized that they were moving at an extremely slow pace – or perhaps it was fast, but the planet was simply too large to pass quickly. She wasn't sure of the speed of a train of dead people, so the answer could have been anything at all.

After a while, she sat across from the professor once more. "Sir, what house were you in?" she questioned, picking at her robes.

"Slytherin."

"You should have been in Ravenclaw."

"Why is that?"

"Because you're always reading."

"And in life you were always reading during my lecture." She gave a sheepish smile at this, and frowned at her shoes.

"What kind of books do you like to read?" The question caught her teacher – however short that span had been – off guard, and he stared at her incredulously. "I like fantasy, personally." She added with a shrug.

"I like books." He muttered, face becoming stony. She was hardly intimidated, though.

"Action, fantasy, science fiction, comedy… you aren't the sappy romance fan, are you?" He saw his body tense a bit, and she laughed. "So what do you like about romance? Is it the ooh-lah-lah parts?"

"You're being rather disrespectful to your elder."

"Sorry, sir." She said quickly, blushing deep crimson. She stared sadly down at her lap. "I didn't mean it, sir."

"You and your brother – I'm going to drown in the utopia of hell."

"Ricky isn't here." He paused in the middle of flipping a page, and looked up. He counted mentally, but sure enough, there was only one of the Jin twins in the room. He laid his book on the bench beside him, and sat up, frowning.

"Exactly how did you die?"

She bit her lip. "I… I was trying to save Ricky. But he was ok… then a wall collapsed on me. He got away though." She could feel the tears brimming in her eyes, and she fought against them, digging her nails into her kneecaps. He stared at her in consideration. She glanced up at him. "I don't understand… when we were alive, you wouldn't have cared."

"It's a bit pointless to hide emotion in a train compartment of the dead with only one student around." He said in a bored tone, and then traced her with his eyes again. "What do you enjoy about fantasy?" he questioned, lacing his fingers under his chin.

"What do you think heaven is like?" He blinked, and stared at her oddly. "Well?"

"A place of reunion." He said distantly, and then squinted. "Why?"

"Just wondering."

"What do you believe it is?" He could see the gears in her head churning, as she absently rubbed the back of her hand over her mouth. "Haven't you thought of it?"

"Yes… but what I think is much different than anyone else."

"Elaborate."

"I think it might be a training ground. Like a military training ground. And we all prepare for the day we kill evil once and for all." He stared at her, a bit bewildered.

"That's a very strange perception for a little girl." He noted aloofly then picked up his book once more, tracing the page. "Very strange."

"I knew you'd think I'm nuts."

"Not nuts, merely strange."

She kicked her legs. "What do you mean a reunion?" She watched as his hand curled ever so slightly. Sisco blinked, but then smirked, although a bit sullenly. "It's the reason you like romance, isn't it?" She watched as he simply turned the page, pretending to ignore her. She wasn't dull, though. "I'm really sorry sir… but I'm sure she'll be happy to see you… or he… whichever it was."

"She."

"Right."


End file.
